Electronic publishing forum

ABSTRACT

A website for bringing together for communications purposes creators of publishable art, publishers of publishable art, and consumers of publishable art using the internet. The website may have a page for the creating artists including a forum for discussion by general consumers, a newsletter, direct emailing, and a link to social networks. Publishers may have a page for publicizing their sponsored creators, selling publishable art, and other purposes. General consumers may review and discuss with other consumers, displayed or advertised publishable art, post reviews, ratings, and recommendations, sell used publishable art, purchase hard version or electronic publishable art, and post and watch videos. Art in electronic form carries enabling authorization issued by the website. Resale of art previously purchased from the website revokes authorization from the original purchaser.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of the filing date under 35 USC119(e) of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No.61/533,471, filed Sep. 12, 2011, the contents of which are incorporatedherein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of electronic publishing, andmore particularly to a system for bringing together creators ofpublishable media, publishers of publishable media, and consumers ofpublishable media using the internet.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Forms of art and performance, such as writings, music, dance, acting,plays, motion pictures, painting and graphics, sculpting, and all sortsof diverse artwork have long existed. These forms of art andperformance, which will be referred to representatively as publishablemedia hereinafter, have long been presented to the public at venuesspecific to each. For example, books have provided access to writingsand to the script aspects of plays, motion pictures, and the like.Physical displays of painting, graphics, sculpture and other artisticobjects have been provided in a physical, or “bricks and mortar”building or the like.

The advent of electronic communications, such as radio and television,and then later, the internet, has expedited public access to publishablemedia. However, even with the internet, interactive participation amongcreators, distributors, and consumers of publishable media has neverbeen provided in a suitable way.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention addresses the above stated need by providing asingle forum for bringing together the three major constituencies of theworld of publishable media. Using the internet as a communicationschannel, the present invention provides not only general purpose accessto publishable media, but also immediate access between the variousparticipants in a way allowing each to make their respectivecontributions to the others, while enabling participant-to-participantcommunication in an immediate, convenient way that was absent from priorpresentations of publishable media to the public.

Obviously, visible and audible created content may be presented to thepublic. However, the forum of the present invention further enablescreators and commercial distributors of the created content to interactin furtherance of both creation of content and also its dissemination.Also, members of the public, or consumers of created content, may haveunprecedented access to content, creators of that content, disseminatorsof that content, and to one another. This is enabled at a single forum,presented as a website, that offers pre-existing avenues of accessdepending upon the particular focus of the user.

Pre-existing avenues of access may utilize up-to-date communicationsadvances, notably, portable telecommunications and data processingdevices, such as smartphones in all variations thereof. Thus, a personcan have immediate access from almost any geographic location and at anytime to created content and those involved with created content.

The various constituencies are not limited to creators, commercialdisseminators, and consumers of created content, but also to educationalaspects furthering created content. That is, students and teachers ofcreated content may participate in this vastly improved communicationand dissemination of created content in their respective learning andteaching roles.

An important feature of the invention is enabling authorization which isconferred on the purchaser of art in electronic form. Should thepurchaser sell previously purchased art in electronic form, theauthorization is revoked. This protects the publisher and artist fromillicit recopying of art works.

It is an object of the invention to provide a single location or forumwhere creators, commercial and other disseminators, consumers, students,and teachers of publishable media may come together for the purpose ofcreating, contributing to creation of, disseminating, enjoying, anddiscussing content, creation, and dissemination of publishable media.

Another object of the invention is to protect the publisher and artistfrom illicit recopying of art works.

A further object of the invention is to expedite communications amongand expedite the functions of creators, commercial and otherdisseminators, consumers, students, and teachers of publishable media,using the internet and portable data processing enabledtelecommunications devices.

It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements andarrangements thereof by apparatus for the purposes described which isinexpensive, dependable, and fully effective in accomplishing itsintended purposes.

These and other objects of the present invention will become readilyapparent upon further review of the following specification anddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various objects, features, and attendant advantages of the presentinvention will become more fully appreciated as the same becomes betterunderstood when considered in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which like reference characters designate the same orsimilar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a representation of a home page of a website according to oneimplementation of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a representation of another page of the website according to afurther implementation of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram summarizing steps of a method of operating aninteractive website according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention may be regarded as a method which is implementableon internet enabled data processing devices, for bringing together forcommunications purposes creators of publishable art, publishers ofpublishable art, and consumers of publishable art using the internet.Internet enabled data processing devices include desktop and laptoppersonal computers, tablets, smart phones, and the like, includingproducts known as iPhone®, iPod®, Blackberry®, Kindle®, Nook® by way ofexample and not limitation. Publishable art may include writings such asbooks, novels, short stories, articles and others, paintings, graphics,and other image based media, and dynamic media, such as movies, audio,and video for recording dance, music, public speaking, acting, lectures,and diverse presentations, to name but a few. All of these forms of artworks may be reproduced and disseminated in electronic format which isdownloaded to an internet enabled data processing device of the typedescribed above.

Use of an internet enabled data processing device may be used to accessa website according to the present invention. An exemplary home page 10of the website is shown in FIG. 1. The home page may display a logo 12indicative of the organization sponsoring the website, a legend 14identifying the sponsoring organization, a legend 16 summarizing orrepresenting the purpose of the website, and a number of clickableoptions 18, 20, 22, 24, 26 for advancing the person accessing thewebsite to a desired page of the website, among other legends. Thelegend 14 in this case identifies Indi-e Publishing LLC as the operatoror sponsor of the website. The legend 16 summarizes the overall productof electronic media. The clickable options 18 and 24 enable members ofthe public to subscribe and attain certain privileges associated withmembership, and to sign in to advance to various pages of the website.The clickable option 20 enables a member of the public to obtain anewsletter which may be electronically disseminated by the website tosubscribers. The clickable option 22 may enable a subscriber to advanceto a discussion forum which is open to subscribers. The clickable option26 may present email addresses, hyperlinks, telephone number, physicalstreet addresses, and other ways to contact the operators of thewebsite.

The website may offer further options, such as ways to access readabletextual content, audio content, video content, to interactivelyparticipate in forums soliciting commentary and other inputs, and waysto purchase art works which are available for purchase through thewebsite.

Art works which are available for purchase may be advertised on variouspages of the website by publishers of publishable art, directly byartists, or creators of publishable art, or as resale by subscribingmembers of the public who have purchased art works using the website andwish to sell the same.

Preferably, various pages of the website may include an artist profilepage, which may for example present biographical information, artistgenerated videos, commentary by fans and other subscribers to thewebsite, and links to specific artistic products of an individualartist, among other possibilities.

The website may offer product profile pages featuring description of theart works, and commentary from the subscribing public, which may beinteractive. For example, subscribers may read and write reviews, rateartistic products, and purchase art works through the website at aproduct profile page.

The website may feature a patron roster, or a list of purchasers of artwork.

The website may present a page dedicated to use as a forum whereinartists and subscribing members of the public may interact with oneanother. This page may also feature broadcasting or podcasting ofartistic performances in real time for example, and also of recordedprior performances.

The website may present pages directed to educational aspects of artworks and diverse resources, such as writing workshops, publishing andproduction resources, image consultants, upcoming conferences, andopportunities to appear in newsletters and in other ways. The websitemay issue a virtual newsletter which is emailed to subscribers, madeavailable for rss feed, posted as a link on social networking sites, andlinked to industry publications and events.

The website may introduce new artists, promote artistic media, andscheduled events, and may present articles written by authors andprofessionals in the world of art works and publishing. Publicity may beleveraged by offering chat rooms, message boards and in other ways.Viral advertisement may be implemented through blogging, vlogging,YouTube®, and email recommendations.

The website may host online seminars, may implement automated directemail marketing, and may offer services such as editing and formattingfor publishing.

The website may present hyperlinks to social networks such as Facebook®,Twitter®, and LinkedIn®.

The website may offer places to sell both new and used artistic mediaincluding hard copies (e.g., physical books).

The website may offer software applications which are downloadable tosmart phones, tablets, portable and desktop personal computers, and thelike, which will give those devices ability to read, display, and playany electronic media type.

FIG. 2 shows a sample website page 30 which in the present example isdirected to advertising both hard copies (e.g., paperback) andelectronic format of the novel Persuasion, by the author Jane Austen. Inthe website page 30, the book is briefly summarized and annotated.Options are made available for interactive selection by subscribedmembers of the public to purchase, write and read reviews, recommend thebook, rate the artistic product, and schedule and participate in realtime discussions with other members.

Turning now to FIG. 3, with the concept of the novel website now setforth, a method 100 for bringing together for communications purposescreators of publishable art, publishers of publishable art, andconsumers of publishable art using the internet will be described. Stepsof the method 100 will be understood to refer back to and incorporate,where appropriate, characteristics of the website described priorly.

The method 100 may comprise a step 102 of providing an website which isrestricted in access to subscribers to the website. In oneimplementation of the invention, subscribers are charged a fee for theirsubscription. The method 100 may comprise a step 104 of providing thewebsite with an artist page, a step 106 of having members of the publicsubscribe to and access the website, a step 108 of making accessible onthe artist page of the website content including at least one of factspertaining to at least one individual artist, such as biographicinformation, description of publishable art created by the artist, andpublished reaction by subscribed members of the public to thepublishable art created by the artist. Reaction by subscribed membersmay take the form of opinions, ratings, and the like. The method 100 maycomprise a step 110 of making the publishable art in electronic formcreated by the artist available for purchase to subscribed members ofthe public on the website by uploading from the website to an electronicdevice in the possession of the subscribed member purchasing thepublishable art. It would be possible to effect data transfer from oneelectronic device for downloading to a second device if desired. Forexample, a subscriber away from home may utilize a smartphone to orderartwork, and to specify download to a personal computer at home, forexample.

The method 100 may comprise a step 112 of providing the website with apublisher page and a step 114 of having publishers of publishable artmake publishable art available for purchase on the website by uploadingfrom the website. This could be implemented on the publisher page forexample.

The method 100 may comprise a step 116 of providing the website with apublic interactive forum page, a step 118 of having subscribed membersof the public enter commentary on the public forum page, and a step 120of enabling the subscribed members of the public offer previouslypurchased publishable art from the website for resale on the website.

In a particularly important feature, the method 100 may comprise a step122 of causing the website to institute authorization which enables artin electronic versions purchased on the website to be enabled andaccessed for the purchaser and only for the purchaser. This may beimplemented by requiring special reader or player software that comeswith subscription, by requiring a dedicated physical reader or playeravailable through the website, by embedding controlling software in thesold product or otherwise embedding encryption and disablement with thesold product, or in any other suitable way.

The method 100 may comprise a step 124 of causing the website to revokeauthorization instituted in the step 122 for any purchaser of art inelectronic versions purchased on the website when that purchaser sellsthe purchased art on the website. This step protects the author orpublisher from unauthorized copying of the art work.

The method 100 described thus far may be augmented by additional stepswhich for example, further the appeal, utility, and power of the websiteand its use. For example, the method 100 may comprise a step 126 ofenabling subscribed members of the public post their individual videoson the website. The method 100 may comprise a further step 128 ofdisplaying on the website at least one hyperlink to at least one socialnetwork. This may be used to export commentary about a work of art tothe affected social network, to export advertising content, or othercontent pertaining to art work or an artist.

The website need not be limited to electronic media. Again consideringFIG. 2, it will be seen that the subject book is shown to have one pricefor a hard copy of the book and a second price for an electronic formator version of the same book. This accommodates both traditional andmodern tastes in reading. Therefore, the method 100 may comprise a step130 of making hard versions of publishable art created by at least oneof the artists having an artist page available for purchase from thewebsite. Hard versions will obviously be understood to refer to hard orsoft cover books, but also prints and other artworks in their physicalform, such as tapestries, three dimensional sculpture, and the like.

The website may be arranged to promote self-publishing by prospectiveauthors of art. To assist novices in this process, the method 100 maycomprise a further step 132 of making formatting conversions availableto subscribed members of the public available via the website, therebyassisting subscribed members of the public to become artists creatingpublishable art.

To accommodate establishment of personal websites by artists, the method100 may comprise the further step 134 of providing links to art createdby one of the artists on the website. The website may institute aroyalty system or other compensation arrangement to derive income fromsales which originated at the website but which culminated or were fullyimplemented at another website or by another means, should the link toanother website come into play.

To enhance the experience of subscribers, the method 100 may comprisethe further step 136 of providing a web page which invites subscribedmembers of the public to participate in an online discussion forum. In afurther evolution of the discussion forum, the website may comprise afurther step 138 of enabling artists having artist pages to participateanonymously in discussions at the online discussion forum.

The method 100 may comprise the further step 140 of providing real timestreaming of performance content on the website. Additionally, themethod 100 may comprise the further step 142 of providing real timestreaming of interviews of artists having artist pages on the website.

As a supplement to presentation and promotion by artists, eitherdirectly or through publishers, the website may promote educationrelated to art works and artists. Therefore, the method 100 may comprisethe further step 144 of enabling professionals in the field of educationto offer educational materials for sale via upload on the website.Additionally, the method 100 may comprise the further step 146 ofenabling professionals in the field of education to offer onlineseminars and interactive classroom sessions on the website. Stillfurther, the method 100 may comprise the further step 148 of providingan archive of previously presented seminars on the website. Educationrelated activities may for example be presented on web pagesspecifically dedicated to educational issues.

To enable users to utilize their existing smartphones and other internetenabled data processing devices to improve convenience in accessing thewebsite, the method 100 may comprise the further step 150 of providingvirtual reader players and virtual reader devices usable with thewebsite.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are presented purely in representative capacity tovisually emphasize to the reader the focus of the invention aspertaining to reproducible works of art. Obviously, other forms of artworks may be similarly presented to subscribers to the website.

The steps presented herein may be varied from the order as presentedwhere feasible, and may also be practiced selectively in any feasiblecombination. No inference should be made that because all of the stepsare depicted as being connected in FIG. 3 that they must all necessarilybe present when practicing the invention or that they may only occur inthe order presented herein.

While the present invention has been described in connection with whatis considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to beunderstood that the present invention is not to be limited to thedisclosed arrangements, but is intended to cover various arrangementswhich are included within the spirit and scope of the broadest possibleinterpretation of the appended claims so as to encompass allmodifications and equivalent arrangements which are possible.

We claim:
 1. A method which is implementable on internet enabled dataprocessing devices, for bringing together for communications purposesartists who are creators of publishable art, publishers of publishableart, and consumers of publishable art using the internet, wherepublishable art includes at least one of writings, music, dance, acting,plays, motion pictures, painting and graphics, and sculpting, comprisingthe steps of: providing an website which is restricted in access tosubscribers to the website; providing the website with an artist page;having members of the public subscribe to and access the website; makingaccessible on the artist page of the website content including at leastone of facts pertaining to at least one individual artist, descriptionof publishable art created by the artist, and published reaction bysubscribed members of the public to the publishable art created by theartist; making the publishable art in electronic form created by theartist available for purchase to subscribed members of the public on thewebsite by downloading from the website to an electronic device in thepossession of the subscribed member of the public purchasing thepublishable art; providing the website with a publisher page; havingpublishers of publishable art make publishable art available forpurchase on the website by uploading from the website; enabling artistshaving artist pages to participate anonymously in discussions at theonline discussion forum; making hard versions of publishable art createdby at least one of the artists having an artist page available forpurchase from the website; providing links to art created by one of theartists on the website; making formatting conversions available tosubscribed members of the public available via the website, therebyassisting subscribed members of the public to become artists creatingpublishable art; enabling subscribed members of the public post theirindividual videos on the website; enabling professionals in the field ofeducation to offer educational materials for sale via download from thewebsite; enabling professionals in the field of education to offeronline seminars and interactive classroom sessions on the website;providing an archive of previously presented seminars on the websiteproviding the website with a public forum page; having subscribedmembers of the public enter commentary on the public forum page;enabling the subscribed members of the public offer previously purchasedpublishable art from the website for resale on the website; providingreal time streaming of performance content on the website; providingreal time streaming of interviews of artists having artist pages on thewebsite; causing the website to institute authorization which enablesart in electronic versions purchased on the website to be enabled andaccessed for the purchaser and only for the purchaser; and causing thewebsite to revoke authorization for any purchaser of art in electronicversions purchased on the website when that purchaser sells thepurchased art on the website.
 2. The method of claim 1, comprising thefurther step of displaying on the website at least one hyperlink to atleast one social network.
 3. The method of claim 1, comprising thefurther step of providing a web page which invites subscribed members ofthe public to participate in an online discussion forum.
 4. The methodof claim 1, comprising the further step of providing virtual readerplayers and virtual reader devices usable with the website.